


Tumblr Prompts

by vuccijl



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: Drabble, F/M, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-30
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2020-10-02 00:55:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20455715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vuccijl/pseuds/vuccijl
Summary: Where all my tumblr prompts live for easy access! Thought it’d be good to put them all in one spot! Might add to it periodically or feel free to send me some requests and I will try to get to them at some point in this lifetime! (Lilliloves)





	1. Chapter 1

“Are you sure about this?” Annie asks in concern. She looks over her shoulder for the hundredth time to make sure no one is watching them. She gnaws on her bottom lip feeling nervous - wishing that Beth reciprocated her feelings. There’s harmless fun and than there’s breaking into the apartment of a scary gang-banger and Annie’s not sure she’s cut out for that type of excitement.

Beth nods her head and squats down so that she is eye level with the knob of Rio’s front door. “Very sure.”

“You know I’m not usually one to talk a person out of bad ideas but would you be as sure if you weren’t drunk as shit right now?”

Beth turns her head to look up at her sister and pins her with an intense stare. “I’m not ‘drunk as shit’ I’m buzzed. And I’d be very sure in any state, intoxicated or not.”

“I feel like this can’t end well.” Annie whines, tapping her foot on the floor impatiently. She crosses her arms over her chest making no move to help her sister.

“It will end fine. Will you relax.” And the irony is not lost on either of them that Beth is the one telling Annie to relax. Beth ignores her sister’s groan and demand to hurry up and turns to focus on the task at hand. She has a bobby pin in one hand and a credit card in the other and she’s sure she can figure out a way to break in if she just concentrates.

“Maybe you could YouTube some tips for me.” Beth suggests smiling at her seemingly genius idea.

But Annie shakes her head, the pit in her stomach growing the longer they stand in the hallway of this building. “Beth, it’s really late.”

“No, it’s really early. It’s only 2am.”

Annie rolls her eyes and tries a different tactic. “Are you sure his kid isn’t in there?”

Beth freezes and drops her hand. She lowers her head and covers her face with both hands and let’s out far too loud of a groan considering the time and the fact that they are trying to be stealth.

“Oh my God! I didn’t even think about that.”

“Oh wow, Annie to the rescue.” Annie praises herself and she smiles smugly because finally she seems to have talked some sense into her sister.

“Shit. This was a bad idea.” Beth says mostly to herself than to her sister. She stands up and throws the credit card she‘s holding into her bag. She turns to her sister and frowns when she sees her nodding emphatically in agreement.

“Are we going?” Annie asks but she’s already moving down the hall towards the exit.

Beth’s shoulders sink but she doesn’t make a move to follow. “I really wanted to get my pearls back. And my underwear!”

Annie stop in her tracks and turns back to her sister but doesn’t move back in her direction. She whisper yells instead. “Right but maybe you could ask him for those instead of breaking into his apartment in the middle of the night. Let’s go!”

“I can’t just ask him to give me back the panties he stole when he screwed me in a bar bathroo-.”

The click of the door behind her and the pure look of terror on Annie’s face cause Beth to swing around in a hurry. She comes face to face with a pissed off looking Rio. He’s only half dressed in a pair of sweatpants that hang low on his hips. His upper body is naked save for the tattoos on his neck and across his arms and Beth can’t keep her eyes from skimming over his lean body. She hadn’t gotten the opportunity to see him during their bathroom romp after all.

“Do I even wanna ask?” Rio deadpans, and Beth can tell he’s trying hard not to snap. He looks equal parts exhausted and agitated and she suddenly wishes she would have listened to any or all of Annie’s warnings.

She had been out earlier that night with Ruby and Annie celebrating her new partnership with Rio. It had started off as dinner and than turned into drinks late into the night. They had wrapped up after midnight and while Annie had been under the impression that Beth was driving her home, Beth had other plans. She’d driven in the direction of Rio’s house not really even sure _why_. She had only known where he lived because she’d gotten a look at his license one day when she was meeting with him at the warehouse.

Annie had been too tipsy and tired to realize they were headed in the wrong direction until they’d pulled up outside of his building. She had followed Beth inside, warily listening to her scheme to steal back the belongings of hers that he possessed. It was an awful plan, not thought out in the least bit, and it had been destined to fail from the very beginning.

“I believe you have something of mine.” Beth answers and she tries her hardest to sound more confident than she feels. Her voice wavers slightly and her cheeks flush but otherwise she stays composed.

His eyes skim down the length of her, payback for her earlier perusal. Beth hears Annie clear her throat behind her and it’s only than that Rio’s attention snaps to the blonde at the end of the hallway.

“I’m gonna go wait out in the car.” Annie says, pointing over her shoulder. She scurries away before Beth can even think to stop her.

Beth turns back to Rio and meets his dark gaze. She swallows at the look in his eyes, she can’t tell if it’s lust or annoyance, and waits for him to make the next move.

“Can’t imagine what you think I got of yours.” He says sounding interested. He leans his shoulder against the door frame and crosses his arms over his chest. His bare feet are crossed at the ankles and he’s the picture of relaxed. Beth on the other hand is starting to sweat.

She peaks around him ignoring his comment to try to get a better look inside. “Is your son here?”

“Not sure why that’s any of your business.”

Beth sighs and meets his gaze. “I was going to try to break in but than I realized he might be here and decided not to.“

Rio chuckles although it’s dry and he’s clearly not amused. “That was real nice of you. You think the only security I got on this place is a dinky doorknob lock?” He says, glancing briefly at the bobby pin she still holds between her fingers.

She shrugs and drops the pin into her bag. “I hadn’t really thought the plan all the way through.”

“Hm, why don’t that surprise me?”

She purses her lips. “Ok, well, I think I’ll go now.”

But he reaches out to grab her arm before she can turn to leave. “Whatchu think I got of yours?”

Her cheeks flush bright red and it moves its way down her chest. His eyes trail down as he smirks at her reaction but his grip on her arm is tight and there’s no way he’s letting her off the hook.

“I’d like to note for the record that I’ve been drinking.”

He nods and bites back a smile. “Noted.”

“I may also have been looking for a reason to see you.” She admits quietly, wringing her hands together.

He hums in acknowledgment and waits for her to continue.

“There was a brief moment where I thought breaking in to try to retrieve my pearls and panties was a good idea.” She lowers her head in shame because when the words are coming out of her mouth for him to hear it sounds insane and ridiculous and oh my God when did she become this lunatic?

He lets out a loud laugh and she can’t help but crack a smile because at least he’s entertained and not holding a gun to her throat.

He reaches forward and grabs hold of her hips, pulling her towards him. “If you want a repeat, sweetheart, you just gotta ask.”

She rolls her eyes and tries to pull away but his fingers are digging into the skin between her jeans and her shirt. She relents, letting him pull her the final distance towards him so that their chests are touching.

“Annie’s waiting in the car.” She argues but it’s a weak argument and his hand moving up to wrap around the back of her neck makes it clear he doesn’t care.

“Think we both know we can make it quick.” He says, his voice is rough and thick and it makes her thighs clench in need. This is what she had been hoping for when she had driven over here.

“I don’t want quick.” She mumbles and his hold tightens around her neck. She reaches out to skim her fingertips along the waistband of his sweatpants and he lets out a shaky breath.

“Go give her your keys. I’ll drive you home in the mornin’.”

So she does. She practically skips outside and she ignores Annie’s outrage when she tells her to drive herself home - that she’ll be staying. Annie mutters something under her breath but takes the keys out of sister’s hand. Beth all but runs back inside but stops dead in her tracks when she sees Rio standing in his doorway holding a string of pearls and a scrap of blue underwear.

“You come in here you ain’t gettin’ these back.” He says with a smug smile across his lips and she just rolls her eyes because - more likely than not - she’ll be adding to the collection.


	2. Chapter 2

“Oh my God, Beth would you hold still.” Annie says half out of breath. She squeezes Beth’s foot and squints to get a closer look.

“You’re hurting me!” Beth shouts wiggling some more from her spot on the couch. She is laying vertically with her left leg in the air, foot in Annie’s face. Annie is holding a pair of tweezers in her hand attempting to remove a splinter from her sister’s heel.

“I’m barely touching you. You need to stop moving so much.”

“What’s taking so long?!” Beth asks running low on patience. Her sister has been examining her foot for what feels like hours and has yet to make any progress. Every few minutes she feels her dig the sharp point of the tweezer into her heel just to pluck at her skin and mutter a curse under her breath.

Beth attempts to stay still for a few minutes and tries her hardest not to kick her sister in the nose. After a length of time that feels like an eternity, Annie goes in with the tweezer again.

“That little fucker is really deep in there.” Annie comments after another failed attempt.

Beth groans. “Annie just let me do it.”

Annie squeezes the foot tighter refusing to let go. She twists Beth’s ankle in order to get a look from a different angle when a throat clears behind them and catches them both by surprise.

Annie drops Beth’s foot and swings around from where she is perched on the arm of the couch. Beth sits straight up, her foot landing with a thud on the floor.

Rio is standing in the doorway of the family room, smirking at the two sisters in front of him.

“Am I interruption’ something?” He asks innocently, raising his eyebrows in question.

Annie lets out a loud laugh and throws her hand over her mouth. Beth smiles and her cheeks heat up because they must look ridiculous from where he is standing. She grabs her foot and peaks down at it before looking back to Rio with a pout.

“I have a splinter.” She mumbles because she doesn’t quite want to admit it to him but she has never been a great liar where he’s concerned either.

He walks towards the couch and leans over the back to get a closer look. He picks up her slim foot and eyes where Annie has been poking.

“And this one was the best person for the job?” He asks dryly nodding his chin in Annie’s direction.

Annies hands fly to her hips and her eyes widened in mock offense. “Hey! You try getting that thing out. It’s making itself very at home.”

The corner of Rio’s mouth lifts in a small smile. Most of the time he has no patience for Annie but every once in a while Beth catches him thoroughly amused by her younger sister.

Rio grabs Beth’s foot and pulls her leg up and over the back of the couch. She’s awkwardly sitting and attempting not to fall off the edge. He holds his hand out to Annie and she plops the tweezer into his hand. He pushes Beth’s black legging higher up her calf unnecessarily and his fingertips trail along her leg on the way back down to her foot. She bites her lip at the contact and purposefully avoids Annie’s gaze.

Rio studies the splinter and she blushes at the fact that he’s so close to her foot. She tugs attempting to pull away but he only tightens his hold.

“Worried I have a creepy foot fetish or something’?” He asks quietly with a smirk and she rolls her eyes but let’s him continue his appraisal.

“You’re not funny.”

He pokes her with the tweezer and she grimaces as he digs into the skin of her heel. It’s only a small pinch though and then he’s holding up the tweezer in victory, the small grain of wood between both ends.

“What the hell, man!” Annie exclaims in a huff clearly annoyed that he’s been able to do in seconds what she’s been attempting for close to an hour.

Beth had no doubts - had he ever not succeeded at something?

He shrugs and walks into the kitchen to throw out the splinter and rinse the tweezers. Annie groans and jumps off the arm of the couch.

“He’s incredibly annoying. I don’t have a clue what you see in him.”

Beth ignores her sister and sits up. She frowns when she goes to stand, the poking and prodding has left her heel slightly sore.

“Hold it.” Rio says entering the room again. She stops and watches him move toward her to sit in the space she had just occupied. He tugs on her hand to pull her down next to him and lifts her foot back into his lap. She senses Annie walking out of the room but doesn’t turn to stop her.

“What are you doing here?” She asks innocentally watching as he opens a tube of antiseptic to rub a small amount over the red mark where he’s just pulled the splinter out.

He shrugs and opens a bandaid to place over her wound. He let’s go of her foot but not before brushing his fingers around her ankle and up the smoothness of her calf. Her breath catches at his touch.

“Brought take out.” He says, tilting his head in the direction of her kitchen where the bag of food sits on the counter.

Her mouth opens and closes in surprise because they’ve established a relationship of sorts (mostly one of the sexual nature) but it has never included sharing a meal together.

“For us? To eat together?” She questions and it sounds stupid when she hears the words that come out of her mouth but it’s too late to do anything about that.

“Yeah, darlin’ that was the idea.” He’s so casual about it that she thinks maybe she’s overreacting.

She nods and moves to stand but he grabs her hand to stop her. “Your sis can stay for food but then she’s outta here. I haven’t been inside you in a week I’m runnin’ out of patience.”

She swallows and appreciates his willingness to tolerate Annie for a little while longer but she’s not feeling as patient as he is suddenly. His eyes are dark and his voice is rough and she doesn’t want to wait a second longer.

“I’ll kick her out now.” And the smug look on his face almost stops her - almost - and she wonders if this was his plan all along.


	3. Chapter 3

She’s laying under her covers, a book in her hands, when she hears her phone buzz on the nightstand next to her. Her eyes glance over to the clock - it’s late, after midnight - but she’s been waiting for his phone call.

“Hello?” She answers and she’s not whispering but her voice is low and quiet matching the late hour and glow of the dim light coming from her bedside lamp.

“Hey.” Rio responds on the other end. He sounds exhausted and she hates that he works so hard, hates that he doesn’t ever give himself a break.

“Where are you?” It’s not what she wants to know. She wants to ask if he’s okay, ask if he’s getting any rest, ask if he can just _come home_ because she’s tired of not seeing him.

“Just landed.” He answers. He’s been out of town for two weeks first travelling with Marcus to a soccer tournament in Florida, than taking care of some “business deals” in Ontario and Toronto. His flight out of Toronto had been delayed earlier that day so while she had anticipated seeing him tonight, that was no longer the case.

“Happy to be home?” She asks picking at a thread on the quilt covering her. She hears rustling on the other end of the line and assumes he is walking through the airport towards his car.

“I’ll be happy when I’m in my bed.” He mumbles and she’s picturing what he must look like. Heavy eyes, wrinkled clothing - but he’s probably as handsome as ever.

They both go quiet momentarily. She is thinking about all the things she wants to say, he is moving as quickly as possible through the airport so that he can finally be done with all the fucking travel. He hates the deal making part of the job - wishes he trusted anyone enough to send them in his place but he doesn’t. Always has to have his hands in every aspect of every decision.

“You should have let me come with you.” Beth says even though they’ve had this conversation before. He’d declined her original offer with a quick brush off and she hadn’t pushed but she’d wondered why ever since.

“Nah, sweetheart. You too much of a distraction.” He mutters and she hears the beep of his car as he unlocks it.

She blushes but rolls her eyes. “I’m your partner.”

“Yeah, in all senses of the word. Wanting to lift your skirt up in a business meetin’ with a new client ain’t ideal.”

She hates his answer but loves it all the same. Letting him take her in a seedy bar bathroom had made her feel more in control than ever. She’d become 50/50 partners with him and found the courage to leave Dean for good. Her relationship with Rio had just naturally grown from there. They’d progressed from random fucks in bathrooms and offices and cars to take out dinners on the couch and sleepovers when they didn’t have their respective children. She was hopeful that someday soon they might even spend time together _with_ their children but…baby steps.

Things were _good_ and she’d become accustomed to seeing him at least every few days. Two weeks felt like an eternity and she wondered what that meant. Wasn’t sure she was willing to examine it too in depth quite yet.

“I miss you.” She says quickly, suddenly, and she hears his intake of breath and wonders if her words have surprised him as much as they have her.

He doesn’t respond for a moment and the old Beth would have quickly played it off as a joke but the current Beth - the one who is more confident in herself - lets it sit.

“Your place is much closer to the airport than mine.” He finally says and his observation is probably his way of saying he misses her too.

She smiles and nods even though he can’t see her. “Very good sense of direction. I’m proud of you.”

“Don’t be a smartass.” He says dryly but she can tell he’s smirking.

“Come over.” She says all joking aside. She wants him to know that she’s serious.

And he does come over. It takes him another fifteen minutes to get there and she doesn’t get out of bed to greet him just waits for him to come into her room. He gives her a small smile as he enters but neither of them speak. When he crawls into bed with her he swings his arm around her stomach and pulls her body into his but that’s all. He doesn’t kiss her, doesn’t try to push his hand into her panties, doesn’t lift her shirt to cup her breasts. He just holds her and she lets him and eventually she feels his breathing even out and he’s deep asleep.

It’s the first night they spend together just sleeping and she decides rather quickly that it’s her _favorite_ night.


	4. Chapter 4

She doesn’t want to be alone right now is all she can think as she sits curled up on her sofa very much alone. She contemplates waking up Emma and Jane or even Danny just so that she has someone to cuddle with but it would be a stupid decision and not a satisfying one. It’s him she wants to be with even when he makes her feel the way she does right now.

She’s not sure how much time passes but eventually she hears him come through the back door. She doesn’t make a move to greet him but stays where she sits on the couch, a throw blanket over her lap and a tumbler filled with bourbon in her hand. The glow of the television is the only light in the room but she has no idea what is playing on the screen.

She feels him enter the room before she sees him and waits for him to speak first.

“Kids asleep?” She hears him ask, his voice rough and she knows without actually knowing that he’s had a few drinks.

She nods but doesn’t open her mouth, doesn’t trust her voice not to betray her. She has only _just_ stopped crying and she doesn’t think she’ll be able to control the tears if she starts to talk.

She hears him sigh and then shuffle around the couch so that he can look her in the face. She hasn’t looked but her eyes must be puffy, her cheeks red and tear stained. She tries her hardest not to meet his eyes but his gaze is roaming over her, insisting, and she gives in. She wishes he would show any sign of what he is feeling - any sign that he might be as affected as she is - but his face is blank and expressionless.

“How could you do this to me?” She whispers after several moments of silence because she needs to know. She’s not sure he’ll even answer but before she can ponder it any longer he’s sitting on the coffee table directly in front of her. Her legs are tucked underneath her and his knees hit the couch where she sits.

“I didn’t actually _do_ anything.” Is what comes out of his mouth and she scoffs at him because it’s such a Rio answer. She meets his eyes and she knows that he knows that his response is weak at best and that he owes her more.

So she waits. She sits there and she gives him nothing because he doesn’t deserve it and for once in her life she isn’t going to give into him. If she has learned anything from her failed marriage to Dean it’s that she is a strong-willed, independent woman that doesn’t need a man. It doesn’t change the fact that she wants the one in front of her, though.

“You thought about it. That’s just as bad.” She says tersely when she can’t stand the silence any longer. She moves to place her drink down on the table next to him. She crosses her arms over her chest and doesn’t miss the way his eyes linger on her breasts. She’s never doubted his desire for her - only the timestamp that comes with it.

“I didn’t-” He starts but is smart enough not to finish the sentence. He pauses and clenches his teeth together tightly. His jaw ticks and she watches his tongue peak out to lick his lips.

He leans forward to prop his elbows on his knees. His hands cup his chin and he stares directly at her. His eyes are dark and it looks to her like he’d rather be anywhere else but having this conversation. He readjusts his position so that he is sitting more comfortably on the table and she flinches when his legs brush her knees. He notices and is none too pleased.

“Naw, don’t do that.” He says with a shake of his head and now he’s mad and it irritates her that he thinks he has any right. “You saw me talkin’ to another woman and immediately jumped to conclusions.”

“You weren’t _just_ talking to another woman you were flirting with another woman. A pretty, young brunette that could not be more opposite than me.”

He shrugs and rubs his hands over his face. “Your idea of flirtin’ and mine are very different.”

“I’m tired of wondering what I am to you.” She says quietly chewing on the inside of her cheek. That is how all of this started. She had asked him what they were, where they were headed and he’d shut down like he always did. They’d settled into a routine, into what felt suspiciously like a serious relationship but every time Beth tried to label it he clammed up. She was who she was. She didn’t need a ring, didn’t particularly want another one, but she needed to know she could count on him not to leave. She knows this life they have together is so different than anything he’s ever done - ever considered doing - and she is constantly waiting for him to turn and run.

He makes a move to inch closer to her and reaches his hand out to rest on her thigh but she pulls back and sits up further on the couch. “Don’t you dare touch me right now.”

The words roll out of her mouth before she can stop them and she regrets it immediately when she sees the look on his face. He reels back, his eyes wide and she thinks for once she’s actually surprised him. She has never, not once, asked him not to touch her. She’s usually begging for it. She thinks that might be the problem. He’s always distracting her with his touch because he knows just what it does to her.

“How do I know where you’ve been tonight?” She follows up even though she knows it sounds ridiculous. She knows that the woman she had seen him talking to at the restaurant earlier that day was harmless. She knows he would never cheat on her. He isn’t Dean after all. But when she’d seen that smirk on his face and the young, gorgeous woman it had been directed at - something inside of her had snapped. She has never felt like she could keep him interested for long, is always waiting for him to lose interest and she thinks it’s finally taking a toll on her - and on him.

“Ma, you got issues.” He says after a beat and she thinks he’s about to lose his cool but he stays calm and quiet and maybe that’s worse, she decides. “I been doing this with you for months and I ain’t ever given you any indication that I want anyone other than you. Pretty sure I can’t keep my fuckin’ hands off of you and that’s _never_ been a problem for you before.”

“Well, what happens when you get bored?” She asks as she throws the blanket off of her lap and raises her voice slightly. Not enough to wake the sleeping children one floor above them but enough to let him know she’s serious. She’s finally saying everything she has kept bottled up inside of her for so long. “What happens when you decide the younger, skinny girl at the bar is way more appealing and interesting than the suburban housewife you’ve been messing around with?”

“What happens when you do?” He shoots back at her quietly but his voice is hoarse and he has to clear his throat before he can continue. “What happens when you decide the white, widower jackass from Kenny’s school that can’t keep his fuckin’ eyes off your tits is a much more PTA-approved choice than the tattooed, gang-banger you been screwin’?”

Her brows furrow and - who is he even talking about? Brandon? The guy she had volunteered with at the bake sale a few weeks ago? She has never even looked twice at him - isn’t even remotely interested in him…could never even picture a time where she would be.

But maybe that was the point.

Thoughts swirl in her head and for the very first time she thinks -

“I got doubts just like you, sweetheart.” He takes the words straight from her head as soon as she thinks them and she suddenly feels foolish as she looks at him. _Of course_ he does. She wonders constantly why he is with her but hadn’t he been the one to ask her ages ago, when they had first met, what she was doing with someone like him? Maybe he was still waiting for her to answer.

“I’m crazy about you.” She finally says without moving. Her voice is barely above a whisper and her heart is completely on her sleeve. She wants to reach out to grab his hand, wants to fold herself into his lap and never let go but she had also just told him not to touch her and - _God_ \- why would she ever tell him not to touch her?

“Feelings mutual, ma.” He says with a quick shrug of his shoulder as if it’s all so obvious. As if he doesn’t understand why they have to say it when they show it regularly. As if to say that all of this could have been avoided if she’d just been straight with him.

And she thinks that maybe she finally believes him.

She tilts her head and narrows her eyes at him. “If you weren’t flirting what _were_ you talking to her about?”

He rolls his eyes and scoots forward to place his hands on her legs. He pauses before they can land on her and raises his eyebrows as if to ask her if it’s okay. She nods and shivers when his palms rest on her thighs, fingers pressing into her skin. She pulls her legs out from under her, dropping her feet to the floor so that she’s straddling his legs. Her knees hit the coffee table and it stops her from getting any closer.

“She asked me what was good to eat there,” He said with a shrug both of their eyes follow his finger as it traced figure eights on her thigh. “I said I didn’t know - that my girlfriend waitin’ in the car had suggested we get takeout from there for the first time. If I’d known you’d decided to come inside…”

He trails off and her cheeks flush at the word girlfriend - it’s the first time he has referred to her as that - and even though she has wanted to hear him say it for so long it somehow feels…insignificant. Like maybe they’re so much more than that - maybe there isn’t a label for what they are to each other and maybe that’s okay.

She gives in and moves to wrap her arms around his neck and pulls herself onto his lap. It’s awkward considering he’s sitting on a wooden coffee table but he loops his arms around her waist and leans in for a kiss.

Just as his lips are about to meet hers she pulls back slightly. "She was hitting on you.”

He groans and squeezes her hips, _hard_, and she grips his neck tighter digging her nails into the skin just under his t-shirt.

“Bake sale Brian was hittin’ on you weeks ago and you didn’t see me startin’ a fight with you over it.”

“Brandon,” She corrects with a grin. She bites on her lip when he glares but she’s laughing inside - she’d had no idea he’d been so hung up on this. “And no, you just grabbed my ass and kissed me obscenely in front of him. It all makes sense now.”

He pulls her to him and presses his mouth to hers in a punishing kiss. She doesn’t stop him just opens her mouth to nip at his lip. He backs away after a moment and smirks at her. “Maybe next time you should lay your claim on me like that instead.”

And maybe next time, she would.


	5. Chapter 5

“Can you believe she said that?” Beth asks while checking on the roast she’d put in the oven earlier that evening.

Rio hums and chews on the tip of the pen he’s holding. He’s focused intently on the crossword puzzle in front of him and Beth’s jaw drops when she turns and realizes he hasn’t heard a word she’s said.

“Rio.” She says sternly and he looks up when her tone catches his attention.

“Sorry, what?” He asks but he’s distracted, she can tell.

“Did you hear anything I just said?”

“Yeah.” He says, scribbling in an answer to three across. “PTA mom #3 said somethin’ ‘bout you bein’ a divorced mom of four.”

Beth groans because just the thought of her earlier conversation makes her fuming mad again. “She said I must love being divorced because I get paid alimony and child support! As if Dean is supporting me and I’m sitting at home twiddling my thumbs!”

His brows draw together and he frowns as he looks at her. “Who the fuck says twiddling my thumbs?”

“I do!” Beth exclaims indignantly, throwing the pot holder in her hand down violently on the counter. She loosens the apron tie around her neck and yanks it off, tossing it onto the counter. She places both of her hands on the granite top and attempts to calm her racing heart.

“Relax, sweetheart.” He says softly with a small smile but he’s back to reading the puzzle in front of him seemingly unaffected by her outrage.

“I don’t like that people still seem to think I’m depending on Dean.” She’s slightly calmer now but is ready to blow at a moment’s notice.

“Yeah, I don’t particularly like that either.” He says thoughtfully. He drops his pen to stare at her. He’s finally all in on the conversation and of course it’s a comment about Dean that gets him to focus completely.

“I’m a single mother of four and I do a damn fine job supporting myself and my children.” Beth says with a hand on her hip. She takes a sip of the red wine sitting on the counter in front of her and waits for Rio to comment. He’s deep in thought though so when he doesn’t, she continues.

“Just because I can’t exactly go around announcing to the world how I do it doesn’t mean I don’t. Not to mention they know I’m dating someone else.” She’s rambling now but she doesn’t seem to care and Rio doesn’t seem to notice.

“They all know Dean is an asshole. They just like to throw the fact that I’m divorced in my face as if it wasn’t my decision. As if I want to still be married. I hate those women.” She’s pissed again now and it takes her a minute to realize that Rio is looking at her curiously.

“What?” She asks wiping at her mouth in case she has something on her face.

“Maybe we should get married.” He says casually picking up his pen again to resume his puzzle.

Her eyes widen and her jaw drops. She opens and closes her mouth several times but even when she’s finally able to form some kind of response she falls flat on her face. “I- what-“

She stutters over a few other words before he glances up at her with a smirk. “Just a thought. Might get those bitches off your back.”

“Are you serious?” She all but screeches the question and he laughs loudly, shaking his head at her reaction.

“Why would I not be serious?” He asks as if she’s being ridiculous and she can’t understand how they got here. He can’t actually be serious with this proposal. Proposal. Was that what this was????

“You just asked me to marry you.” Beth says clarifying slowly as if maybe the speed at which she speaks might knock some sense into him.

“More of a suggestion really.” He responds with a shrug and she wants to move around to his side of the island and shake him.

“You would want to marry me?” She asks and she’s quiet now. Her voice is shaking and she hasn’t even really processed the fact that this is a conversation they are having. She can honestly say she has never really considered the possibility of marrying Rio but now that he’s thrown the idea out into the universe…

“I ain’t never been married. Could be fun.” He says filling in another spot in his puzzle.

“Could be fun?” She repeats slowly again, this one for her sake. “It’s not a baseball game, Rio. You don’t just marry someone because it _could be fun_.”

He shrugs and tosses his pen giving up on the puzzle and giving in to the fact that he’d been the one to bring up this conversation.

“Look it’s not like I’ll die without you but we got something good going here. We basically already married anyway.”

“That’s very romantic.” She responds sarcastically but her mouth is dry and butterflies are swarming in her belly. “And we don’t even live together.”

“No but we might as well, yeah? I ain’t seen the inside of my apartment for longer than a few minutes in weeks and Marcus has his own room here.”

“He shares with Danny.” Beth points out unnecessarily because she knows what he’s getting at.

Rio rolls his eyes and pushes his stool out from under him so that he can stand. He leans his elbows onto the island, links his fingers together and looks at her. “My point is I don’t want no one thinkin’ that Dean is takin’ care of you. So I think we should consider it.”

“Consider getting married?” She repeats once again because she’s still not sure she isn’t dreaming.

“Yeah.”

“You and me?” She’s staring at him now, hardly blinking, because she has no idea who the man in front of her even is right now.

“Yeah.”

“Because of Dean?”

He smiles and moves around the counter so that he’s standing in front of her. She turns to him and swallows and this is Rio why does she feel like a school girl with a crush right now? He reaches up to push a piece of hair behind her ear and - will he stop doing that if they get married? Will things stay good for a while and then fall apart like they did with her first marriage? Are they crazy to even think that the two of them could possibly make a long term _anything_ work? Sure they’d made a relationship work and a business partnership but til death do them part?

“You’re thinkin’ too much.” He says roughly stepping closer to her. Their chests touch now and she feels him everywhere just like she always does.

“Things are good the way they are. Why would we mess with that?” She asks seriously because if he’s literally suggesting something as crazy as this then she’s going to make sure they consider all angles.

But he’s Rio and he doesn’t worry about anything - ever. “You’ll still be you, I’ll still be me. Don’t see how bein’ married will change that.”

She sighs because of course he doesn’t. He’s never been married but she has. She knows what it can do to a relationship. But…maybe that was because Dean was never right for her. He gave her four beautiful, perfect children and at that time in her life Dean was who she should have been with but maybe now it was her and Rio’s turn.

She thinks for a moment before she decides to say what’s really on her mind. “You’ve never even told me you love me.”

Her cheeks are bright red, she can feel them burning, and she tries really hard to hold his gaze but she’s far too vulnerable and she drops her eyes to her feet after only a few seconds. He lifts her chin with his hand and forces her to look him in the eye.

“You don’t actually need me to say it to know, do you?” He asks and she thinks he knows the answer already but there’s a small hint of doubt in his eyes as if maybe all this time he was wrong to assume.

She shakes her head because she doesn’t really. He shows her in different ways all the time these days. In the way that he touches her, in the way that he looks at her, in the way that he just _always_ seems to know what she’s thinking, what she needs, what she wants.

“You never said it to me either you know.” He says it jokingly, his eyes are twinkling and she smiles.

“I did actually.” She says and he narrows his eyes in question. “When I went to the gun range with you last month even though I _hate_ shooting that thing…that was me telling you.”

He opens his mouth to respond but she holds her finger up to his lips to stop him.

“And when I made that enchilada recipe you asked me to try even though I hate Mexican food.”

He nips at the finger she’s holding to his lips but she only presses it to his mouth harder.

“When I took care of you when you had the flu. When I gave you that blow jo-.”

He cuts her off by pushing her finger away and reaches his hand behind her head. He grips her hair in his hand and tugs her to him, meeting her mouth in a forceful kiss.

They stand there, lips pressed together, until she pulls back to look at him.

“You understand that means you’ll have to live with my kids?” She asks because again she’s not sure he’s thinking of actual logistics and going from one kid to five is a logistical _nightmare_ in her opinion.

But obviously he answers with a shrug. “I figured as much, yeah.”

“And you understand that means you’ll be stuck with me for-“ she stops and clears her throat because she’s scared to finish the sentence. Scared to hear his answer. “Forever?”

His mouth tilts up at the corner and he grabs her hips with his hands. “Means I get to fuck you forever too.”

And when he pulls her into the bedroom she lets him and when she wakes up the next morning to the sight of a ring box on her nightstand (with a ring inside that _clearly_ indicates his idea last night was _not_ as spontaneous as she had believed) she accepts.


	6. Chapter 6

### Chapter Text

Rio feels bored. It's a word he usually hates - how can a grown adult ever truly be bored? With his lifestyle especially, he can't remember the last time he didn't have something he could be doing. Sometimes he's just tryin' to _survive ... _so being bored? Not something he's used to feelin'.

But he does lately - or maybe restless is a better word for it. All he knows is that something has got to give soon or he thinks he might just fuckin' lose it on someone.

He's felt this way before. But every time he's right on the edge something happens that shakes him out of this _mood. _ It's not always good - sometimes it's really fucking bad - but it puts shit into perspective right when he needs it the very most.

The first time he put a bullet in someone.

The time he turned a hundred grand of fake money into the real cash in his pocket.

The day Marcus was born.

The first time he laid eyes on Elizabeth Boland.

The time he fucked her in a bathroom.

That time she shot him in the _fuckin' chest_.

The look on her face when he reappeared back into her life like a ghost.

All things that got him feeling alive again - so he's thinking maybe he's due for another moment like that.

He's sitting on a stool at the bar he frequents - the bar he's got a stake in - nursing his third vodka. He stopped wanting after the second but it's easier to sit here with a glass in his hand, pretending. He can see the whole place from where he's at and he has to do a double take the first time he lays eyes on Elizabeth Boland's husband. Or is it ex-husband? He's got no clue and he'll tell himself 'til he's dead that he doesn't give a fuck one way or another. All he knows is that the woman Dean's with is decidedly _not _Elizabeth but a cute, young blonde. 

Not for the first time he can't understand how the hell this guy gets these women to give him the time of day.

He should add shooting the dickhead to his list of moments because _that _had been satisfying. It'd been worth the fight, worth the trouble, to see that bullet blow through him, even though he'd known it wouldn't kill him.

His eyes stay pinned to the table where they sit but his mind can't help but wander to Elizabeth. As much as he tries to forget her when he's not making her life hell it's proved to be a lost cause.

It's been a month since he'd walked into that bar in Rhea's place to give Elizabeth the shock of her life. And it had felt just as satifsyin' as he'd thought it would - to see the look on her face when she saw him standing next to her, very much alive.

He'd threatened and she'd lied straight to his face about a pregnancy that didn't exist. But he'd left, pretended to believe her and then disappeared from her life once again.

Because _he _knew he'd never kill her but _she _didn't. So he'd let her stay scared. He'd let her wonder when he'd show up - _if _he'd show up. 

To be honest, the only reason he hadn't sought her out again was because he didn't know what the fuck to do, didn't know what the fuck to say. For once in his life he didn’t have a plan or an idea - knew what he should do, what people expected him to do, but for maybe the first time ever didn’t have the balls to get the job done.

He hadn't anticipated feelin’ the way he did when he'd seen her again.

He glances back over to Dean and grimaces when he sees his mouth latch on to the blonde's neck. Rio grabs the glass in front of him and drains the contents, pushing back from his seat as he does so. Before he can stop himself, before his mind can catch up with his feet he nods a good-bye to the bartender and walks out of the building.

He knows where he's goin' but he doesn't acknowledge it 'til his car glides down the quiet, suburban street. 

Doesn't accept it until he's pushin' his way through her back door.

Doesn't regret it until he sees her curled up on the couch, sleepin' soundly, the faint glow of the television the only light in the room.

He stops and before he can figure out his next move she shoots up, confused and out of sorts. Rio watches as her head swings around, down to her lap, towards the TV and then over to where he stands behind her.

Elizabeth doesn't gasp, doesn't scream, just blinks once and then twice as if he's a dream. As if she hopes he's not really there.

Her shoulders drop when she realizes he is and she sits up straighter, looking at him over the back of the couch.

"Took you long enough." She says quietly, her voice still hoarse with sleep.

He smirks and he clocks her surprise when it comes across more like a smile than a sneer.

"Just saw your husband with his hands up a hot, blonde's skirt at my bar." He answers. He figures he wants to hurt her but mostly he doesn’t know what the fuck he’s doin’.

She looks startled and then shocked but he thinks it's more 'cause it's the last thing she's expecting him to say.

Elizabeth opens her mouth to respond but closes it just as quickly and he can’t take the silence - it wraps around him and suffocates him enough that words tumble out of his mouth without any rhyme or reason.

"Maybe he'll feel guilty about it when he comes home and finds you bleedin' out." He says with a shrug and if it unnerves her but she doesn't let it show.

He hates that he's impressed - that he's proud at the fact that she ain't beggin' and pleadin' and barterin' for her life.

"Probably not." She shoots back with a scoff, pushing the blanket that lays across her lap onto the floor as she stands.

There's only a couch between them but it might as well be a giant, brick wall.

"Do you want to kill me or do you just feel like you have to?" She asks and her question sets flames ablaze in his chest. Even though he knows she's more nervous than she's lettin' on he ain't proud of her confidence anymore. Ain’t impressed any longer. Now he's just fuckin' annoyed but he can't decide if it's her he can't stand or himself for showin' up here in the first place.

"Did you want to shoot me three times and leave me for dead or did you just feel like you had to?" He mocks, his voice low and rough and sharp around the edges like a knife. 

"Of course I didn't _want _to." She shouts but it's hushed as her eyes dart towards the stairs and for the first time he remembers her kids are probably sleepin' in their beds one floor above them. 

He tenses when she moves towards him but if he's admitting things to himself he figures it's more 'cause he wants her closer and not 'cause he doesn't.

Elizabeth stops when she's standing right in front of him and he can see her chest heaving, can just make out the way her hands shake by her side and _good_, he thinks, let her be scared of him. Once upon a time she had been and it had made his life a hell of a lot less chaotic.

Her eyes dip down roaming over his tattoo and his black t-shirt and black jeans and Rio's eyes zero in on the way her tongue sweeps across her bottom lip. He squeezes his hands together, nails piercing the skin of his palms, to keep from reaching out to sweep her hair behind her ear or do something stupid like follow the path her tongue just had with his thumb.

She lifts her hands, slowly as if she's tryin' not to catch _him_ off guard and before he can even get ahead of her, figure out her next move, she's wrapping her arms around his waist and her fingers are inching underneath his shirt, brushing against his skin sending goosebumps across his body and she’s dipping her hands into the waistband of his pants and - 

_Yeah_ he figures out her game just about the same time she figures out that her theory was right - he don't have his gun tucked into it's usual spot because he'd left it buried in his glove compartment box with no intentions of usin' it on her tonight.

Or ever. 

Her eyes shoot up to his and he forces himself to stare back at her. Her hands are frozen, wrapped around him and he’s tense, torn between the overwhelming need to push her off of him and pull her against him.

“Get the fuck off me.” He finally forces himself to say but it’s through gritted teeth and the half hard erection between them proves his words are _only _words.

She listens though, dropping her arms and stepping back but only just enough.

"Don’t get comfortable.” He says - because he may not kill her but he’s certainly not done with her. 

And when she bites the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling he thinks she might be glad about that.


End file.
